My New Norm - Life in Egypt, so far. . .

Gotta make a living 

Well teaching Art is what I do! But I must admit I have never taught 5 year olds before! I now have to think carefully before the ankle grabbers come in and what am I gonna do to keep them busy for an hour.

I tried googling stuff and looking at Kids projects on Pinterest but I always feel very dissatisfied with what I see, it feels a bit second hand like yesterdays croissants, gone stodgy. So i think this is probably due to my very stubborn original thinking brain, if someone else has done it I'm just not interested. This is not a deliberate kind of rebellious thinking or anything it's rather just the way I'm wired.  So back to the 5 year olds, they are really young, initially they sit there looking bewildered and lost. I tell them to do something and they just stare back at me.

This is one of the groups - not sure exactly which one

I had two helpers who try to catch the little ones who frequently get off their chairs and wander off on some private mission.

One kid is particularly uncooperative and cant keep still, I guess they would pump him full of Ritalin in some places but what do I know of these things?

This one little boy had his mouth all covered in white and also on his shirt and the helpers were freaking out and wondering what the heck he had eaten!

They asked me if I had used white paint or something that morning and were quite frantic, I said well if he starts puking maybe you have him checked out otherwise he seems ok. The little kids are actually really cute and so small! I kinda forgot how tiny a 5 year old is. But they eventually got going on my project which I figured out by making a circle and then turning it into an owl or a fish etc etc. They eventually really got into it, at the end they all wave goodbye and gave me a high 5 as they trooped out and I actually quite enjoyed it.

Another Experiment.

Thought of writing a word and then illustrating it with colour. Worked quite well, might have been a little advanced, I'm just trying out stuff, there are quite a few conflicts over materials and hogging nice colours and all kinds of shenanigans that have to be adjudicated and worked out.

In this group I tried out a 'snakey' idea showing them how to draw a parallel line and attach a head, then colour it in with stripes and what not.













This little guy is the child of an Egyptian Dad and a German mother, apparently this is extremely common in Egypt

Cheers the place where everyone knows your name, well not quite. . .

Yes its a Muslim country but, this is a tourist town and . . . and there is money to be made with booze and so the tourists are catered for.

But its not cheap! I don't go there, this is me on my route walking from my flat to the local supermarket.

When I get back from School I go and get some provisions. Have to buy water, the water here is taken from the red sea. They desalinate it (might have mentioned this already) anyway you have to buy water to drink.

These little taxi bike things are unique to El Gouna, I haven't really tried them yet, but apparently you pay 10 LE and they take you anywhere you wanna go.









This is in late afternoon, the place is dead quiet, just a few individuals.


I went to get 'airtime' at about 4pm and no-body was there! But at 10 o'clock at night or even 12pm the place is buzzing. I remember when I went to Spain, it was very much the same. From Midday to evening nobody is outside, too hot.

I arrive at the local little Superette or what you callit.

I must get a pic of the 'Ballada (sp?) bread, like a flatbread which is as common as the flies around here. You eat it with Olives and Feta Cheese, kinda Mediterranean dish, add tomatoes or whatever, its become my staple diet with coffee and water.








I haven't been well but the other day Debbie asked me if I had seen "The Club" its a local pool just on one the canals. So after School she showed me how to get there, just a short walk from where we stay.

This is the approach to the entrance.









As you walk in it really is inviting and the pool is visible ahead

 This is the view of the pool, absolutely lovely and refreshing with reclining chairs all round and a bar with a menu, everything you need. . .

 Scuse my thumb in the pic but you can see the canal past the pool which is also great to swim in and you can hire paddle boats and take a tour if you wish.